Peregrine Falcon (Family)
"We Fly Above" Hayabusa family motto The first Hayabusa lord, Hayabusa San Hideo, was the military advisor to the Mikado during his war of expansion and his closest friend. It was a common idea, before the Mikado had sons and daughters of his own, that Hayabusa Hideo would suceed him if he were to die on the battleground. While not a great warrior, Hayabusa Hideo was a crafty man skilled in building alliances, negotiating truces and treaties and using old enemities to make sure that the Mikado's action were unchallenged. The modern Hayabusa family are all direct descendants of Hayabusa Hideo and the Mikado's first daughter, and they are often viewed as one of the most "pureblooded" of the Sons and Daughters of Heaven, as they carefully select their marriages in order to make sure their family "remains true to the cause". One of the most powerful and richest family in the Empire, the Peregrine Mon is proudly displayed in almost all important occasions and courts in the Empire. The Hayabusa family The Hayabusa is a large family, even though "True Hayabusa", those of the inner family, are usually far rarer and the appearance of one of them is usually a sign that things are about to change. Following their ancestor calling, a large number of the Hayabusa follow military careers, but often in advisorial roles rather than direct combat roles, while those of a weaker disposition or with less of martial bone in their body often become permanent fixtures in courts and offices in the Empire, even joining the Bureaucracy to further their desire to serve. While those military endeavours take up much of the time of the younger or less influencial member of the family, the "True Hayabusa" are usually tutored from a young age to take over the key roles of the clan, which revolve around a few important things: *Providing the Mikado and the Imperial family with advisors and servants they can trust. *Promoting the Imperial doctrine within the Empire. *Increasing the wealth of the family through commercial endeavour. *Increasing the influence of the family through careful alliances. The Hayabusa have truly embraced the Tarigani culture and have been using it as the basis for their own family culture. The ideals of bushido are taught at a young age and it is rare to see a Peregrine not carrying the two sabers of the samurai caste, and those that are more "active" in their military role love the role of regimental duellist, performing clean iai strikes. Many take the Hayabusa for a vain family due to their love of beauty and "cleaness", but efficiency is what is most important to the Peregrine, and the smartest member of the family knows full well that their honor and glory is not as important as the goals of the family. Lordship and territory The Hayabusa territory is vast and extremely rich. Spanning much of the plains and rolling hills south of the Imperial Capital after many careful alliances, marriages and sanctionned military actions, it encompasses many populous cities, rich ports and very fertile farmland. While rice farms and sea trade used to be the old sources of wealth of the family, in the middle of the 20th and early 21st century, there was a rapid growth in manufactures within the Hayabusa controlled cities, allowing for a drastic increase trade of transformed goods, especially textile (both silk and cotton). Much of the Hayabusa territory is peaceful, with minor military presence being required to maintain it, but this does not mean that the Hayabusa does not have a massive military. Being able to afford it, the Peregrine keep both a powerful navy (the second most powerful in the Sons of Heaven family, right after the Tigershark) and an impressive cavalry and infantry force, comparable in manpower to two full Imperial Legion. Those soldiers are not only well trained and led by the cream of the crop, but extensively well armed and equipped. Ashigaru levies are rarer in Hayabusa armies, as the lords and commanders do not want to weaken their economic power by removing some of their work force to bolster their ranks. Hayabusa lords are known for their intransigeance and attention to detail. Taxes are never left unperceived and crime is quickly repressed, with any form of dissent being reported to the Secret Police and Bureaucracy. This makes many of the peasants and lower caste samurai serving under the Peregrine a bit jaded and scared of their leaders at time, but also gives them a strong moral compass and appreciation for hard work. Most lords also have a love for beautiful things and an appreciation for culture, financing both the visual arts and theater, especially No operas and kabuki theater. The Hayabusa is well known for their religious fervor towards the Way of the Stars, and even though they have well integrated in Tarigani culture, they have not been able to embrace the local religion, unlike other regional lords. Vassal families The Hayabusa is an important family and as such, they have quite a few vassals, especially from descendant families and annexed family. A rumor in the Empire says that every family with a bird in its name actually descends from the Peregrine, except for the Crow, and that their loyalty is questionable at best. Vassal families of the Peregrine are mostly direct servants, administering local areas and running military units in the name of the "ruling family". Important vassal families #The Takatori #The Takamura #The Suzume #The Tsubame #The Fukuro Rivals and enemies The Peregrine is not loved by everyone in the Empire. Bitter rivalries with other major lords have grown over time, even though none of them are comparable to the Bear and Wolf family feuds. The Viper views many of the Hayabusa as self-important lords without the moral guidance necessary to properly serve the Empire and are often investigating the commercial ventures of the Peregrine, believing they are "too good to be true". The Tigershark vies for similar influence in the Empire as the Peregrine does and see them as a rival to their own ambition and often throw sticks in the wheel of the Peregrine to make sure their standing increases The King of Ochimiai also is known to have his own axe to grind with the Peregrine, mostly due to poor trading agreement in the Peregrine trading posts. Important members of the family #Early 21st century *Hayabusa Koichi, retired head of the family. *Hayabusa Satochi, head of the family. *Hayabusa Daigo, elder son, friend of the Mikado's heir *Hayabusa Seichi, youngest son *Hayabusa Keiko, daughter *Takatori Hokuro, family intendant. Category:Great Families Category:Tarigani